Furniture seat



Oct. 3, 1933. D 1,928,999

FURNI TUBE S EAT Filed May 13, 1930 Patented Oct. 3, 1933 umraosrA rssPATENT OFFICE FURNITURE SEAT Luthern. Lichty, Readi Pa; assiznori tDuplex Swing-Spring Seat Company, Inc.) Reading, la. a corporation ofPennsylvania Application May 13, 1930. Serial bro-451,912

8 Claims. (01. 155-479)v slats in position.

While the use of webbing has been and still is v very extensive, suchwebbing has a tendency to stretch and also to tear loose from thesecuring tacks, thus permitting th sagging of the seat in its entirety.

'It has been proposed tofsubstitute for the webbing or slatssupportingthe upholstery springs, a structure consisting of a fabricsheet or fabri cated wire frame resiliently supported by means ofsprings under tension connected about the edges thereof and secured tothe bars of the frame,'the construction being similar to that used insome forms of bed springs.

With the above conditions in mind, I have ro vided' a furniture seatwherein the upholstery springs are supported from a rigid member whichis'suspended from the frame of the seat of the articlebf furnituresolely by means of vertically extendingexpansion springs, thuspermitting not only a directly vertical play of the upholstery springssupport, but a swaying of said support,

which will add materially to the comfort afforded i by the seat of thearticle of furniture.

The tension of the expansion springs is relatively greater than thenormal tension of the com-' pressive upholstery springs, but relativelylower than the increased tension of said springs, developed by theircompression, actual practice having demonstrated that notwithstandingthe overloading of the upholstery springs, it is impossible to compressthem to an extent to cause their complete collapse'upon theslatssupported by the suspension springs.

In order to permit the economical assembly of the seat spring structurein the article of furnij ture, and also secure the desired freedom ofmovement of the slats suspended by expansion springsfrom, the frame ofthe seat,I provide special fittings which may be conveniently attachedto the lower bars of the main seat frame;

are so supported by said bars as to minimize, if not actually prevent,possibility of the loosenof the-fitting as a result of loads appliedthereto through the slatsand the suspension spring structure supportingsame, and so position the expansion suspension springs as to afford Vclearance about sameto. permit of the swaying of the whole springstructure. The construction of these fittings isalso such as to permitthe rapid and convenient locating of the various members of the springrigging upon the seat'frame and in relation to the bars to which theyare secured, andto facilitate'the mounting of the slats and thesuspension springs in the structure of the article of furniture. a

The inventionconsisis primarily in a. furniture seat embodyingtherein aseat frame, a rigid upholstery spring supporting member, compressibleupholstery springs secured thereto, vertically extending expansionsprings, means attaching the top of sau'd vertically extending expansionsprings to the seat frame, and means attaching the bottom of saidvertically extending expansion springs tosaid rigid member, saidvertically extending expansion springs being spaced within the'seatframe to permitthe' free movement of said rigid member; and in suchother novel features of construction and combination of parts as arehereinafter set forth, and described, and more particularly pointed outin the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawing, j i Fig. 1 is a view of a settee or sofa,partly broken away todisclose a seatv construction embodying theinvention; v i

on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 upon a still larger scale;

Fig. 4 is a-view from-the right of Fig. 3; and Fig. 5 is a view of theapplication of the invention to a wooden plate instead of to slatsrasshown inthe otherflgures.

Likeinumerals refer to like parts throughout the several views.

The embodiment of the invention shown in the drawing, is in. connectionwitha settee or sofa indicatedat 10. The seat portion of the sofaincludes an upper bar or rail 11, and a lower bar or rail 12. Theconstruction shown is that now commonly used, particularly with what isknown as overstuffed furniturey, usi removable cushions shown at 13.These cushions'ordinarily contain springs known as cushion springs whichare not shown in the drawing as they have no upon my invention. v Suchcushions 13 are ,supported by the main Fig. 2 is an enlarged. laterallycondensedview seat structure, which embodies therein a fabric top 14secured to the top bar or rail 11 of the seat structure, Compressionupholstering springs and a supporting structure secured to the bottombar or rail 12 of the seat structure. This supporting structure as nowextensively used, consists of webbing sointerlaced and secured as towithstand the, ordinary wear and tear to which the articles of furnitureare subjected. As above stated, it has sometimes been the practice tofirmly support wood slats from the lower rail structure 12 as anupholstering spring support in lieu of the burlap webbing generallyused.

In-the seat of my inventidn l provide a rigid upholstering springsupporting member consiststaples or in any other desired manner, and tothe top facing 14 by-being sewed thereto inthe usual manner. A

' The slats 16 or the panel 17 is suspended from the lower bar or rail12 ,by means of vertically extendedaextension' springs ,18', the tensionof which is relatively greater than the normal tensio'n 'of thecompression upholstering springs 15.

I'prefertouseslats, as 16, since this permits a larger measure ofresiliency in the seat as a whole. a

With a chair or sofa of .average size, I prefer to use two springs 18 ateach endof each slat al- =though with smaller chairs or sofas, only onespring need be used and with larger chairs or the front snugly againstthe bar or rail 12, this flange being of adepth to resist toppling ofthe fitting. Extendingfrom the fitting 19 inwardly of the batter rail12, is'an angular section 21having a depending front flange '22 providedwith openings as. 23 1 to receive the hooked upper end or top 24 of'thespring 18. 'The number of openings 23 is determined by the number ofsprings it'isdesired' to use or to permit variation in the number ofsprings,

"The fitting 19'a'lso has a s'econdangular section 25, extendingover-=thetop 'ofthe bar or rail 12 and having a depending tongue 26adapted to '"fit in a groove or mortise 27. formed in the top of orscrew as 28 passing through face flange 20.

The cfa tongue and groove-or mortise 27 permits the convenientlocatingofthe fitting 19, and since the bar or rail 12 is? ordinarily made 'ofhard wood, will also aid in preventing the toppling of the fitting fromloads applied to the springs 18 which are spaced away" from the bar'orr'ail l2. y-The lower end or bottom of thesprlng 18 is connected withthe slat 16 by means of a channel fi'tting 29, having-a-lower horizontalside flange 30 upon which the slatis adapted to rest and 1 fitting29extends verticallyand abuts against the end of the slat and may besecured firmly'in this position in any desired manner as by means of ascrew or nail 32;" In order to minimize likelihood ing with the size ofthe article of furniture;

, rails 12 of the lower frame of the seat and both ends of the slat 16are equipped with fittings 29.

The slats are thus resiliently supported at each end by means ofsuspension springs which permit a limited swaying action of the slat asa whole as well as the lowering of the slat against the ing of either athick wood slat 16 or a thick wood panel 17 as shown inFig. 5. Thesprings 15 may be connected to said slats by-means of;

tension of the springs 18.

The operation of the herein described is substantially as follows:

The manner of assembling the seat structure of the invention dependsentirely upon the system prevailing in a factory. If desired, thefittings 19 may be mounted upon and attached to 17. The upholsterysprings 15 may then be mounted upon theslats 16 or plate 17,

The nails or screws 28 and 32 are ,used mainly to prevent displacementof: the fittings 19 longitudinalyof the bars, orthe escape of the slats16 from the channelled end fittings 29. These nails or screws, however,have the -further function of relieving the woodwork to which the fitthebars or rails 12 without having the springs 18 attached thereto, and thefittings 29 may be attached in like manner to the slats 16 or platetings are secured from unnecessary strains which mightlead to thesplitting thereof. 7 r

The grooves or mortises 2'7 and 34, in their co-operation with thetongues or flanges 26 and 33, serve to prevent play between the fittingsand thebars 12 andthe slats 16 respectively; They have little or noeffect inpreventing toppling of the fittings in relation to the bars 12or the slats 16, since the' vertically extending flange 20 and tcpflange25 of the fitting 19, and the bottom ,ofthe' channel 29, and the sideflanges 30 and 31, present angularly disposed surfaces of large areaengaging the bars or rails 12 and inclosing the ends of the slats 16which check any tendency of the fittings to topple. The tongues 26 and33, however, are a safeguard supplementing the action of the nails orscrews 28 and 32 in maintaining the fittings in their establishedposition in relation to the'bar or rail 12 and the slats 16 or plate 17.

When the fittings have been properly connected, the fittings 19 to thefront and back bars r or rails 12, and the fittings 29,to the slats 16or plate 17, the. slats may be assembled in the seat structure by merelyhooking the ends 22 of the springs co-operating with each fitting in theopenings, 23 of the fitting 19, and the ends 36 in the openings in theupwardly extending flange 35 of, the fitting, 29. The cloth 14 may thenbe attached'to the springs 15 andto the upper bars or rails 11 of, theframe in the usual manner.

With the parts so assembled, the entire seat structure is suspended fromthe bars or rails 12 by the springs 18, and the springs 15 are held,under tension between the cloth 14 and the slats 16 in theusual'manner, the normal. tension of such springs 15 being lower thanthat of the springs 18.

Any desired number of slats may be used, vary- In a settee or sofa thedistribution and number of cated between such springs. slats in theirentirety may sway in any direction in a horizontal plane, as well ashave vertiis eliminated. Ordinarily two springs 18 are used with each aslatswill be determined by the number of cush ions. .If amplate 1'7 be,used, there willbe-one plate to each cushion. a 1

It will be noted that the springs '18 are spaced well away from thefrontand back bars or rails 12, andthat theslats in their entirety arelo- Consequently, the

cal movement against the tension of the springs If three or more slatsare used in a chair it is obvious that the springs 18 by means of whicheach .slat is suspended, may expand to avariable extent, according tothe point of application of the load to the seat, but that-the saggingof the seat is prevented, even after long continued use, becauseimmediately upon the springs 15 and 18 being relieved from a load theirreflex action willrestore all of the parts to their normal positions.

Experience has shown that, aside fromper mitting a swaying action, thesprings 18 sustain the load applied to the springs 15 unless thesesprings are subjected to an abnormally heavy load. The springs 18,however, will always have a cushioning action and will always permitvthe slight swaying action above referred to. I

If, however, the springs 15 are subjected to an excessive load, thetension developed therein ,as a result of the collapsing of the springsunder this load will exceed the normal tension of the springs 18 andthus divide the cushioning 'effect between the springs 15 and thesprings 18, and avoid that jarwhich 'wouldresult from the totalcollapsing of the springs 15.

.By an arrangementof upholstery springs 15 and suspension springs 18,coacting in the manner described, overloading of the former'ispreventedand likelihood of weakening or breakage of such springs, as aresult ofsuch overloading,

pair of fittings l9 and 29, and this is desirable as tending to avoidany tiltingiof the slats 16. If a" plate-.17 be used,'however, only onespring may be used with each fitting, although I prefer t use at leasttwo springs.

The springs 18 always hang vertically from the fittings 19. This ensuresthe highest cushioning effect and avoids a sagging effect in the seat.In other words, the entire seat when subjected to a load has a tendencyto descend vertically, thus effectively distributing the load throughoutall of the upholstery springs 15 and suspension springs 18 affected bythe load, and the rebound of the springs is also vertical thus tendingto remove all likelihood of sagging of the seat, since even if thevarious springs should weaken, the

only effect would be' a lowering of the seat in its entirety.

The desirability of a seat embodying the invention resides moreparticularly in its great resiliency, great comfort and greatdurability. In cost there is no substantial saving over present methodsof forming the seat.

It is not my intention to limit the invention to the precise details ofconstruction shown in the accompanying drawing, it being apparent thatsuch maybe varied without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

I believe it to be broadly new, however, to provide in a furniture seata rigid supporting member for the upholstery springs which is suspendedfrom the seat-frame by'means of vertically extending {expansion springs,so as to afford what vmay be termeda full floating spring seat riggingas distinguished from a construction in -which thesupportsfortheupholstery springs are rigidly connected ,with the seat frame.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to haveprotected by Letters Patent, is: a 1. A furniture seat embodyingthereina seat frame having front and rear bars, a rigid upholstery springsupporting member, compressible upholstery springs secured thereto,vertically'exe tending expansion springs, metal fittings secured to thefront and rear bars of-the seat frame,

"each having a face flange adapted to abut against said bar, an angularsection, having a depending front flange provided with openings thereinby means of which said expansion springs may be attached thereto,projecting from the top of said .face plate inwardly of the frame, and asecond section projecting from the top of said face plate extending overand in engaging relation with the top of the bar of the frame, and meansholding said face flange in said abutting relation to said bars,an'd'means attaching the bottom of said expansion springs to said rigidmember, said expansion springs being spaced within the seat frame topermit the'free movement of said rigid member. I

2. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame having frontandrearbars, arigid upholstery spring supporting member, compressibleupholstery springs secured thereto, vertically extending expansionsprings, metal fittings secured tothe front and rear bars of the seatframe, each having a face flange adapted toabut against said bar, anangular section, having a depending front flange provided withopenings'jth'erein by -means' of which said springs may be attachedthereto, projecting from the top of said face plate inwardly of theframe, anda second angular section extending over the topof the barhaving a downwardly extending tongue, said bars being mortised along thetop-to receive said last named depending tongues,'and means holding saidface flangein said abutting relation to said bars, and means attachingthe bottomrof said springs to said rigid member, said springs beingspaced within the seat frame to permit the free movement of said rigidmember.

3. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame, a rigid upholsteryspring supporting member, compressible upholstery springs securedthereto, vertically extending expansion springs, means attaching the topof said springs to the seat frame, and channelled fittings embracing 4.A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame, a rigid upholsteryspring supporting member, compressible upholstery springs securedthereto, vertically extending expansion springs, means attaching the topof said springs to the seat frame, and channelled fittings, side flangesupon said fittings, said side flanges embracing the end and engaging theopposite faces of said supporting member, with the bottom of the fittingin abutting relation to the edge embraced thereby, means maintainingsaid flanges in rela,, tion to said supporting member, and an upward 1yextending flange having openingstherein to receive the lower ends ofsaid expansion springs.

" 5. A furniture seat embodyingtherein a seat' fr'ame,a rigid upholsteryspring supporting member, compressible upholstery springs" securedthereto, vertically extending expansion springs,

means attaching the top of said-springs to the thereof to receivethe'tongue of the fitting embracing said edge, and an upwardly extendingflange having openings therein to receive the lower ends of saidexpansion springs.

6. A furniture seat embodying therein a-seat frame having front and rearbars,"a rigid upholsteryspring supporting member, compressibleupframehaving front and rear bars, a plurality of holstery springs securedthereto, vertically extending expansion springs,.metal fittings securedto the front'andrear bars of the seat frame, each having a face flangeadapted to abut against said bar, a section projecting inwardly of theframe from which said expansion springs-are suspended,

and means holding said face flange in said'abutting relation to saidbars, and channelled fittings, side flanges upon said fittings, saidfittings embracing the end and engaging the opposite faces of saidsupporting member, with the, bottom of Q 3 the channel of said fittingin abutting relation to said edge, means maintainingthe edge of saidsupporting member and the bottom of the chaninel of ,said fitting; insuch abutting relation, and -.means 'whereby the bottom of saidexpansion 1 springs may? be attached to said channelled fiteach having aface flange adapted to abut against J said bar, an angular section,having a depending front flange provided with openings therein by meansof which said springs may be attached thereto, projecting from the topof said face plate inwardly of the frame, and a second angular engagingthe bottom of said member having an upwardly directed tongue, saidmember being 'mortised adjacent opposite edges thereof to receive saidtongues, and an upwardly extending flange having openings therein toreceive the lower ends of said expansion springs.

8. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat rigid wooden slats,compressible upholstery springs secured thereto, vertically extendingexpansion springs; metal fittings secured to the front and rear bars ofthe seat frame, each having a face flange adapted to abut against saidbar, an angular section, having a depending front flange provided withopenings therein by means extending overthe top of the bar having adownwardly extending tongue, said bars being mortised along the top toreceive said last named depending tongues, and channelled-fittings, sideflanges upon said fittings, said side flanges embracing the end andengaging theopposite faces a of said slats respectively with the bottomof said fitting in abutting relation to said ends, the side flangeengaging the bottom ,of said member having an upwardly directed tongue,said slats being mortised adjacent the opposite ends thereof to receivesaid tongues.

a l LUTHER D. LICH'I'Y.

